Jim Harper, gang take part in Toys for Tots

The holidays are a time for tradition, and soft rock WMGC-FM’s (105.1) Jim Harper and his Magic Morning Show compatriots will continue one of the longest-running traditions in local radio, starting Monday morning at Twelve Oaks Mall in Novi, as they begin their 29th season of participation with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves’ Toys for Tots campaign.

The annual tour of area shopping malls to help collect new unwrapped toys will move to Laurel Park Place in Livonia on Tuesday, Lakeside Mall in Sterling Heights on Wednesday and Macomb Mall in Roseville on Thursday and wrap up Friday at Oakland Mall in Troy.

Harper and the gang will broadcast live each morning 6-10 a.m., and each remote will feature a complimentary light breakfast, a visit from Santa and other special guests.

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Speaking of holiday traditions, how cool was it that classic rock WCSX-FM (94.7) aired Arlo Guthrie’s nearly 20-minute-long song “Alice’s Restaurant” not once, but four times on Thanksgiving Day? This was one “massacree” that I’m thankful hasn’t been forgotten.

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Public WDET-FM (101.9) is offering listeners the opportunity to attend a private reception Dec. 5 to celebrate the reopening of the Detroit Institute of Arts. A gift to WDET of $600 will give two people the opportunity to have an up-close look at the DIA’s magnificent reinstalled permanent collection and redesigned galleries.

The evening includes a strolling dinner in Kresge Court, followed by docent-led tours of the museum. Call (800) 959-9338 or visit www.wdetfm.org for more information.

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The first trend of the always-important fall ratings period is out, and adult urban WMXD-FM (92.3) is off to a fast start, leading all-news WWJ-AM (950), urban WJLB-FM (97.9), news-talk WJR-AM (760) and oldies WOMC-FM (104.3) among all listeners.

You can bet radio executives will be watching these fall numbers closely, given all the recent turmoil that has taken place with big-name personalities, such as rock WRIF-FM’s (101.1) Drew Lane, WXYT-FM’s (97.1) Jeff Deminski and Bill Doyle, and WOMC’s Jay Towers.

On Monday, Channel 7 aired a report about Lane and his girlfriend, Tess Schuster, that didn’t answer the question of when he expected to rejoin partner Mike Clark mornings on WRIF. In fact, as Lane’s absence continues to drag on, the question may just be “if” instead of “when.” The TV report is available on the station’s Web site, www.wxyz.com or at tinyurl. com/39ycqz.

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If you ever needed more proof about how sports crazy this area is, all you had to do was turn on your radio at 10 a.m. last Monday when WJR, WWJ, WOMC, sports WDFN-AM (1130) and the sports simulcast of WXYT-FM/AM (97.1/1270) all aired the news conference for Michigan football head coach Lloyd Carr as he announced his retirement.

Add that to TV coverage on Channels 2, 4 and 7 and cable outlets ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNews and CSTV, and it’s clear that Carr’s announcement received more attention than even President Bush can count on. A-maize-ing.

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Checking the mail bag, Michael Mardis of Waterford Township took the time to write a note wondering what has happened to non-programmed radio.
An avid radio listener during the late morning and afternoon, Mardis reports that he can almost, to the minute, predict what the next songs will be on at least five local FM stations. He’s searching for a station that features some randomness in its playlists.

The closest thing locally would probably be adult hits WDRQ-FM (93.1). Doug FM seems to switch up its songs a bit more than some of the other outlets do and dips into a bigger swath of music types, at least occasionally.

But what you may really want to try is getting yourself a high-definition radio. There are now 15 “secondary” HD2 stations being offered by local stations that have a much wider of variety than what you’ll hear on the heavily researched playlists of regular FM radio.

Once you pay for the radio, the programming is all free and might just scratch that itch for something different.

Thanks for the nice letter, Michael.

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Set your dial: Dance along with Somewhere in Time’s Tom Wilson and Heather Novak to the beat of the Charlie Barnet Big Band at 6 p.m. today on WMUZ-FM (103.5) and WRDT-AM (560) … This week, Ed Love’s Evolution of Jazz looks at the genre as it moved into the 1970s at 8 p.m. today on WDET-FM … Judy Adams’ Jazz Cafe Discovery Series hosts live on tape performances from Detroit area Jazz artists, “Dr. Dick’s Good Vibes” and Damon Terrell at 11 p.m. today on WVMV-FM (98.7).

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Mike Austerman is the founder of Michiguide.com and has covered radio for The Oakland Press since 2001.